Brewery cafe, scratch kitchen$$oak-cliffMon-Thu 7am-10pm, Fri 7am-12am, Sat 8am-12am, Sun 10am-10pm
West Dallas brewery-cafe hybrid with an in-house coffee bar, scratch kitchen, and tap list, rare in offering quality espresso alongside house-brewed beer from 7am in a stylish converted space.
Order: Morning espresso and sausage kolache; afternoon house IPA tasting flight
Tip: One of few Dallas spots that smoothly transitions from morning coffee to afternoon beer without feeling awkward. Good remote work setup on weekdays.
French artisan bakery cafe$bishop-artsMon-Thu 8am-6pm, Fri-Sun 8am-7pm
Bishop Arts outpost of Dallas's best French artisan bakery, offering almond croissants, pain au chocolat, and jambon et fromage sandwiches alongside quality espresso in a bright neighborhood space.
Order: Almond croissant; jambon et fromage sandwich; cortado
Tip: Croissants and seasonal pastries sell out by noon on Saturdays. The outdoor bench seating on Bishop Ave is ideal on temperate days.
All-day cafe and bar$$bishop-artsMon-Sat 7am-10pm, Sun 7am-9pm
Bishop Arts all-day cafe that transitions from excellent morning coffee and avocado toasts to an evening cocktail bar, with a shaded patio and the kind of loyal neighborhood crowd that tells you it's doing something right.
Order: Morning: avocado toast and cortado. Evening: house cocktail with local spirits
Tip: One of the best patios in Bishop Arts. Gets packed for weekend brunch; arrive before 10am or after 1:30pm to avoid the worst of the queue.
European-style coffee bar$lower-greenvilleMon-Fri 7am-5pm, Sat-Sun 8am-5pm
Greenville Avenue European-style cafe with minimalist espresso menus and inventive seasonal lattes like prickly pear matcha and pumpkin pecan nitro. One of Lower Greenville's most refreshing coffee stops.
Order: Prickly pear matcha latte; minimalist double espresso
Tip: Limited seating. Best as a grab-and-go or patio-table spot. The espresso menu is intentionally short, which means what they do, they do well.
Specialty coffee, Texas roaster$uptownMon-Sat 6:30am-7pm, Sun 7am-6pm
Oak Lawn outpost of Texas-grown specialty roaster Merit Coffee, popular with Uptown and Oak Lawn residents who want a reliable quality espresso program before heading to the Katy Trail.
Order: Honey process Ethiopia filter; signature espresso blend flat white
Tip: Opens at 6:30am Monday through Saturday, one of the earlier specialty coffee starts in Uptown. Good walk-in spot pre-trail run.
New American bistro cafe$$uptownMon-Fri 11am-2pm, Tue-Fri 5pm-9pm
Downtown neighborhood bistro from husband-and-wife chefs Jennie Kelley and Brandon Moore, doing New American lunch and dinner in the Santander building with the idiosyncratic, personal menu only owner-operators produce.
Order: Grilled cheese at lunch; pan-roasted seasonal vegetable plate at dinner
Tip: Closed weekends. The lunch window is short (11am-2pm); arrive by 11:15am or it fills. One of the best weekday downtown lunches in the city.